Die-guiding means for forging presses



. C. A. HILL DIE GUIDING MEANS FOR FORGING PRESSES Filed Jan. 5, 1922 2Sheets-Sheet l [III I u C. A. HILL DIE'GUIDING MEANS FOR FORGING PRESSESFiled Jan. 5, 1922 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented July 29, 1924.

NlTED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES A. HILL, O'F PORT HURON, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR TO' AJJ'OLPHTRUSTEE, 0F DECATUR, ILLINOIS.

DIE-GUIDING MEANS FOR FORGING PRESSES.

Applicationfiled January 3, 1922. Serial No. 526,692.

To all whom it. may concern:

Be it known that CHARLES A. HILL, a citizen of the United States,residing at Port Huron, in the county of St. Clair and State ofMichigan, has invented certain new and useful Improvements inDie-Guiding Means for Forging Presses, of which the following isaspecificationr In forging presses, difiiculty is experienced inproducing symmetrical 'forgings because of the fact that thecomplementary die members will frequently become distorted, or out ofline, and will not, in operation, give truly aligned surfaces, andiII 1-perfect forgings result. Because of this difficulty many articles areproduced on single acting presses, necessitating the use of a muchheavier and. more powerful press than where a double acting press isused.

The present invention has for its object to provide means whereby thedie members of a press, may be always centered and brought into properalignment so that perfect forgings result, this being accom plished byproviding guiding means which control the movement of the dies withrespect to one another, the guiding means being so constructed that itmay be installed at slight expense, and when worn or broken, be readilyreplaced without the necessity of renewing any of the more costly partsof the press or dies.

In order that the invention may be clear to those skilled in the art,there is shown, in the accompanying drawings, one embodiment of theinvention, but it will be understood that mechanical expedients andconstructions other than those herein disclosed may be adopted withoutdeparting from the range of the invention.

In the draWiIigs:

Fig. 1 is a view of the dies and die holders of a single press with theimprovements applied thereto.

Fig. 2 is a view in bottom plan of the upper die member and itsassociated parts shown in Fig. 1.-

Fig. 3 is a detail bottom plan view of the die guiding and aligningmeans.

Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional view substantially on the line 4-4 ofFig. 3.

Referring to the-drawings by numbers,

like numbers indicating like parts in the to the ram in any suitablemanner, as by the central post 11 and the slotted ears 12.

Mounted on the under side of the head 10 the face of the die 17 beingcomplementarily formed to meet the formation of the upper die member 13,and, if desired, a knock-out block 20 may be provided for the lower die.

In order that the dies 13 and 17 may be centered and aligned alwaysaccurately, there is provided the guide ring carrier 21 which, as hereshown, is circular and of substantially inverted L-shape in crosssection with an aperture in its top, so that it slides with a closesliding fit over the die carrier 14. and may be adjusted vertically andcircumferentially thereon, the sa1d carrier ring 21 being held in anyadjusted position by means of the screw-22 passing through therelatively long threaded aperturesin the base of the inverted L-shapeguide ring, as shown in Fig. 1.

The depending flange of the said carrier ring 21 is cut away, as shownat one or more points in its circumference, primarily for the purpose ofgiving access to the dies by tongs or other tools or bars of material,and these cut away portions or openings permit also the easymanipulation of the guide elements proper, presently to be de-- scribed.

The guide ring 21 depends below the die 13, as shown in Fig. 1, formingan open bottom recess or housing surrounding the die, said guide ringcarrier extending downwardly a sufficient distance so that, as the diesmove together, it will envelop the die carrier 18 for the lower die 17.The carrier ring 21 may be made of an inexpensive material, since it isnot subjected to direct wear, but serves merely as a carrier. Theguiding element proper comprises, as here shown, the ring-like members23, two being shown in the present instance, although more than two maybe used, if desired, these members being secured within the skirt of thecarrier 21, and, when so secured,

forming a diameter equal to the diameter of the die carrier 18 of thelower die so that, as the dies come together, the members 23,

' forming the guiding element, will engage it being necessary only toloosen the screws andbring the dies always into perfect alignment.

While the guide members 23 may be mounted in various ways, oneconvenient and satisfactory manner'ofmounting consists, as here shown,of forming an annular recess on. the inner wall of the carrier ring 21,and providing the members 23 with an annular projection 24 on theirouter peripheries-which seats in the recess formed in the wall of thecarrier ring so that the members 23' are very effectively held againstvertical movement under the thrust and pull of the closing and openingdies. To retain the members 23 in place, there are provided the holdingscrews 25 which pass through the skirt of the carrier ring 21 and intothe members 23. I

I The guiding members 23 are preferably made, as best shown in Figs. 2and 3, so that their combined arcs are less than a complete circle, andit will be observed that preferably the members 23 are of a length whichspans the flange of the guide ring between the openings in that flange,so as not to obstruct those openings but to give freeaccess to the dieparts. These guide sections 23 may be readily'removed and inserted inthe recesses in the inner wall of the skirt of the carrier ring 21, andso replaced and repaired without the necessity of taking down any of theother parts of the press,

25, slip the members 23 from their recesses,

and repair or replace them if worn. These.

sections 23 may be made of a metal which will stand, without undue wear,the constant friction of the reciprocating die parts which they guide,and since they are relatively small, the cost of material and labor forreplacement or repair ofthese guiding sections is very considerablyreduced over what the cost would be if the entire carrier ring, or acorrespondingly heavy part, had to be replaced.

With this arrangement it will be seen that standard parts may be veryreadily and economically equipped with means for guiding the diemembers, and that when once installed, the cost of maintenance of suchguiding devices is very small. The invention ensures, therefore, in theproduction of forgings, that the die parts will be correctly aligned inoperation and the articles produced symmetrically forged.

In order that danger of breakage of the press parts may be eliminated,there is provided a break out web which, if excessive pressure beexerted, which is dangerous to the press parts, will at once relievegive way under such pressure, and, in the present dis closure, it isshown as applied to the upper die member, although it might be appliedto the lower die member if desired.

The die head 10, heretofore referred to, is provided at its under sidewith a recess 26 which is spanned by a web 27 against which the dieblock 13 proper seats. The web 27 is provided with an annular portion 28seated in an annular recess in the under side of the die headsurrounding the recess 26 so that the relatively thin web 27 lies inproper position to be broken out or sheared off in event of excessivepressure being exerted on the die block 13. The recess 26 provides ampleclearance for the web 27, if, under pressure, it breaks out or shearsoff, and the parts will be so proportioned, of course, that the shearingstrain necessary to break out or shear the web 27 will be the maximumstrain to which the press may be subjected without danger of injury.Immediately that maximum is reached, the

break out web '27 will relieve the pressparts.

W'ith this arrangement and following this disclosure, it will be seenthat a press is provided in which absolute accuracy in the meeting ofthe dies and consequent symmetry of the articles forged is secured, and,furthermore, all danger of breakage of the main press parts by reason ofexcessive pressure is avoided.

It will be understood that mechanical changes and expedients which arethe equivalent of those here shown may be adopted and still be withinthe'scope of my development.

I claim:

1. In apparatus of the class described, the combination of relativelymovable dies, a carrier on one of said dies, a guide memtr removablymounted on said carrier, and a member on the opposing die adapted toengage said guide member.

2. In apparatus of the class described, the combination of relativelymovable dies, a carrier on one of said dies, a plurality of guidemembers removably mounted on said carrier, and a member on the opposingdie adapted to engage said guide members.

3. In apparatus of the class described, the combination of relativelymovable dies, a carrier connected to one of said dies, a guide ringformed-of a plurality of curved members removably mounted on saidcarrier, and a member connected with the opposing die adapted to engagesaid curved guide members.

4. In apparatus of the class described,

the combination of relatively movable dies,

' members removably the opposing die to engage said curved guidemembers.

5. In apparatusof the class described, the combination of relativelymovable dies, a carrier removably secured to one of said dies and havinga section extending beyond the face of the die, a plurality of guidemounted on the inner wall of. said extended section, and a memberconnected with the opposing die adapted to engage said guide members.

6. In apparatus of the class described, the combination of relativelymovable dies,

a carrier connected with one of said dies and having an annular sectionextending beyond the face of said die, a plurality of curved guidemembers removably mounted on the inner wall of said annular section, anda member connected with the opposing die adapted to engage said curvedguide memers.

7. In apparatus of the class described, the combination ofrelativelymovable dies, a guide carrier substantially L-shaped in cross sectionconnected with one of said dies and having a section extending beyondthe face of said die to form a recess surrounding said die, a pluralityof guide members removably mounted on the wall of said recesses, and amember connected with the opposing die adapted to engage said curvedguide members.

8. In apparatus of the class described, the combination of relativelymovable dies, a guide carrier substantially L-shaped in cross sectionconnected with one of said dies and having an annular section extendingbeyond the face of said die to form a recess surrounding said die, aplurality of curved guide members removably mounted on the lnner Wall ofsaid extended section, and a member connected with the opposing diegdapted to engage said curved guide memers.

9. In apparatus of the class described the combination of relativelymovable dies, die carriers for said dies, removably secured to the diecarrier of one of said dies and having a section extending beyond theface of said die to form a recess surrounding said die, and curved guidemembers removably secured to the wall of said recess and adapted toreceive the die carrier of the opposing die in advance of the meeting ofthe dies.

10. In apparatus of the class described, the combination of relativelymovable dies, a guide carrier removably mounted with respect to one ofsaid dies and having a section extending beyond the face of the dies andforming a recess surrounding said die, guide members removably mountedon the extended portion of said carrier, and a member connected with theopposing die adapted to engage said remov a guide carrier able guidemembers in advance of the meet- I ing of the dies.

11. In apparatus of the class described, the combination of relativelystationary and movable dies, a carrier supported to move with themovable die, a guide member removably mounted on said carrier, and amember on the relatively stationary die adapted to engage'said guidemember.

12. In apparatus of the class described, the combination of relativelstationary and movable dies, a guide carrier supported to move with themovable die and projecting beyond the face thereof, a guide memberremovablymounted on said carrier, and a member adjacent the relativelystationary die adapted to engagesaid guide mem r.

13. In apparatus of the class described, the combination of relativelymovable and stationary dies, a carrier connected with the movable dieand having an annular section extending beyond the face of the die, aguide member removably mounted on said extended anular section, and amember on the relatively stationary die to engage said guide member.

14. A guide member for forging presses com rising a collar adapted to besecured in fixe relation to a die and having a guide supportingextension, and a guide member removably mounted on said extension.-

15. A guide member for forging presses, comprising a body portion,adapted to be secured in fixed relation to a die and having a guidesupporting extension extending therefrom and guiding members removablymounted on said extension.

16. Guiding means for forging presses, comprising an annular bodyportion provided with means for securing it in fixed position relativeto a die, an annular portion extending from said body portion, and guidemembers removably secured to the inner face of said extensions.

17. Guiding means for forging presses, comprising a body portion havingmeans for securing it in fixed relation to a' of said guide carryingsecit in fixed position relative to a die and provided with a guidereceiving groove in the face of its inner Wall, and a plurality of guidemembers fitted to and secured in said groove.

20. Guiding means for forging presses comprising an annular collarsubstantially L-shaped in cross section adapted to be secured in fixedposition relative to a die and having an annular groove in the face ofits inner wall and a plurality of arc-shaped guide members secured insaid groove and extending around a portion only of said annular collar.

21. Guiding means for forging presses comprising a collar adapted to bepositioned in fixed relation to a die and havin a recess therein, agroove in the wall of said recess, a plurality of guide rings havingcurved engaging projections mounted in said groove, and securing meansfor said guide members.

22. A guide member for forging dies extending beyond the face of the d1eand having a section of its wall cutaway to permit access to the die;

23. A guide member for forging presses having a circumferential flangeextending beyond the face of the die and having a section cut away topermit access to the die.

24. Guiding means for forging presses comprising a removable carrierring having a circumferential flange extending beyond the face of thedie, and having a section of that circumferential flange cut away topermit access to the die, and a guide member mounted on the inner faceof said flange.

25. Guiding means for forging presses comprisin a carrier ring having acircumferential ange extending beyond the face of the die and havingsections cut away to permit access to the die, and a plurality of.

guide members secured to the inner faces of the flange sections.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

CHARLES HILL.

